


Conviction

by Vizkopa



Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst, F/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-03-01
Packaged: 2018-05-24 03:55:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6140713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vizkopa/pseuds/Vizkopa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>“This is my problem, I have to fix it” he said. “I’ll be back, I promise. Tell everyone I said hi.”</i>
</p><p>
  <b>WARNING: Contains major spoilers from chapter 813 and 814. If you are not up to date with the manga, I suggest you stop reading here.</b>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Conviction

“ _The groom will be the third son of the Vinsmoke family, Sanji._ ”

The cold marble-tiled floor seemed to fall away beneath your knees, and you no longer felt the bite of the chains that bound you. The words echoed in your mind, all other sounds muted as if heard from underwater. Your body turned numb in their wake.

It couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t.

Sanji’s cigarette seemed to fall in slow motion from his lips. It bounced once on the tiled floor and lay there smouldering, forgotten. You couldn’t see his face.

You vaguely heard the others’ exclamations of surprise from beside you.

“ _What!?_ ”

“Sanji’s getting _married!?_ ”

Capone Bege thrust the invitation across the table. “Take it,” he said, lips curling around his cigar.

Sanji made no move to receive it. He could see the words clearly enough, emblazoned in formal red lettering against a pale pink background. They spelled a sort of finality, an inevitability, as if they were written in stone instead of mere ink. There was no denying or mistaking it now.

“Why now of all times?” Sanji said finally, his voice low, measured.

Capone scoffed, tossing the unwanted invitation onto the table. “How would I know what’s going on with your family?”

Sanji made no reply. He kept his head lowered and his arms crossed, calm and collected, even as the still smoking cigarette on the floor burst into flame. Capone rushed to extinguish it. 

“Bastard! What the hell are you trying to do, burn down the whole castle?!” He stamped it out furiously and gave Sanji a long, lingering glare, before taking his seat again at the opposite end of the table.

Beside you, amongst the commotion, you could hear Brook muttering to himself.

“Vinsmoke? That name sends a chill down my spine… It can’t be…”

Nami and Chopper heard him too. They wanted answers as much as you did.

“Sanji, what’s the meaning of this?” Nami pleaded.

“Are you really getting married!?” Chopper cried.

Sanji ignored the both of them. His shoulders tensed, as if he was expecting another voice to chime in, one he could not ignore. But it never came. You watched as he turned his face to the side, almost enough for you to meet his eye. But he seemed to catch himself just in time, and turned back to Capone.

“Who in the world is behind this harebrained scheme?”

“Your family, you dumbass. You know, for a son of the Vinsmoke’s, you don’t seem properly groomed.” Capone drained his wine glass and gestured for more. Sanji had not touched his.

“Sanji’s family…” Nami muttered. You had to strain your ears to hear her. “Come to think of it, even though we met him in East Blue, he did say he was born in North Blue.”

You clenched your jaw. Sanji rarely spoke about his past, not even to you. It hurt that he had not trusted you enough to tell you.

“I always thought that was fishy,” Brook whispered back. “You have to cross the Red Line to get from North to East Blue. That’s quite a journey.” He turned to Sanji. “Just how the hell were you raised?”

Sanji made no indication that he had heard them.

“More importantly,” hissed Caesar. You had almost forgotten he was there. “In case you idiot’s haven’t realised it yet, Charlotte is Big Mom’s surname. This jerk here is marrying one of her daughters.”

“Whaaat!?” Chopper cried and you all cringed. “Does that mean he’ll be the family of an Emperor?!”

Caesar snorted. “That’s the least of your troubles. If he marries her, you’ll all become Big Mom’s underlings by default.”

There were exclamations of shock from the others, but still you remained silent, gazing at the floor, watching everything unfold in your peripheral vision. You wanted to hear what Sanji had to say.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Sanji piped up. “I have no obligation to go to this party.”

You felt your heart swell. That was your Sanji. He would never agree to this wedding. He wouldn’t leave the crew. He wouldn’t leave _you_.

He reached across the table and picked up the invitation, glaring at it in disgust. “Marriage? How utterly asinine. And with a women I’ve never even met, no less. There’s no way our captain would tolerate it.”

Sanji looked Capone in the eye and held up the invitation, and in one swift motion, tore it in two. The two halves fluttered to the floor, and lay there, still. “Luffy is the man who will become the Pirate King,” he said proudly. “He would never stand to be someone’s underling.”

Capone narrowed his eyes and took a long sip of his wine. Then he smiled, eyes cold and mirthless beneath his heavy brow. “There seems to be a misunderstanding,” he said. “I’m not asking.”

Around you, the walls began to bend and distort. The floor beneath you became unstable and fluid like hot tar. You watched it creep up on the five of you. There was nowhere to run.

“Do you forget? I have full control inside this castle. You’re on your way to Mama as we speak.”

Sanji found himself face to face with an entire arsenal of swords, axes, and even the tableware as they glinted threateningly from where they hung in the air around him. You felt a sinking sensation, and looked down to find the floor had swallowed your legs like quicksand. Beside you, Nami cried out as she too began to sink.

“Sanji!”

“Nami-san! [Name]!” Sanji turned and finally met your gaze. In his eyes you saw panic, and hopelessness. And you saw guilt. The table cloth has slithered its way around his throat, slowly constricting like a snake. There was nothing he could do. You watched the realisation hit him as the floor enveloped your chest, making it hard to breath.

Then, in the blink of an eye, everything returned to normal.

“There’s no escape,” Capone said simply.

“If there’s two thing Mama hates,” said a new voice. “It’s bitter treats, and tea party no-shows.” A man stepped forward from the ring of thugs that surrounded the room. He wore a sickening grin, and a pistol clutched tight in his hand. Tattooed on his forehead and the back of his hand were strange glyphs you didn’t recognise.

“You know what they say,” he said with a chuckle, tongue lolling from his mouth. “Even the demons of Hell will come when called to Mama’s tea parties.”

He leaned down to Sanji’s height and Sanji flinched away instinctively. “Of course, at the end of the day it’s up to you whether you go or not. But there’s one thing you should know first…”

One large hand blocked your view of the man’s lips. You strained to hear the words he spoke, but it was over before you could catch a single syllable. The man pulled back and smirked down at Sanji as he sat frozen in his chair. He was silent for a long time. Then, finally, he pulled out a cigarette and, his hands trembling ever so slightly, lit it and took a long puff. He exhaled.

“How the hell did you find that out?”

“A foolish question,” said Capone. “Our boss is an Emperor of the pirate world. You’d best be prepared to do everything she tells you.”

Sanji thought for a moment. “Get me a pen and paper.”

When they were in his hands, he began scribbling a note. Then, folding it in half, he stood and slipped it into Nami’s hand, never once meeting your eyes.

“This is for Luffy and the others,” he whispered. “Please believe me when I say this. I never intended to keep this from any of you. Nami-san, Chopper, Brook…” He finally turned to you and held your gaze. “[Name]…”

You looked away. It didn’t matter whether he intended to or not, he had kept things from you. Things that were now driving the two of you apart. Like secrets always did.

“[Name], look at me, please.”

You refused to lift your eyes from the floor. Sanji sighed.

“I never expected to have to face my past ever again. Now I have no choice but to end it. I’m sorry.”

It was as if he spoke the words only to you. As if he thought you deserved an explanation. You did, but not like this.

“The minks are outside. Watch your heads on the way down.” Then he leaned in and whispered in your ear. “Don't worry. The only woman I’ll be marrying is you.”

He left a long, lingering kiss on your forehead before pulling back and offering you a dazzling smile. Then with one strong push, you felt yourself falling. You bounced and rolled as you hit the ground, turning back just in time to catch one last smile.

“This is my problem, I have to fix it” he said. “I’ll be back, I promise. Tell everyone I said hi.” The words were so full of conviction, and yet there was a sense of finality about them that cut deeper than even the sharpest blade.

And then the castle doors swung closed and he was gone.


End file.
